Plot

The episode begins at the Wattersons'house. Richard is seen looking at a book, and looking in the fridge at the same time, while looking confused. Darwin points out to Gumball that he never sees Richard look confused at the fridge, with Gumball agreeing. Richard asks them where the salad is, with Richard mispronouncing the word "salad." Gumball corrects him, and says it's in the bottom of the fridge. Richard places a piece of lettuce on a plate in the kitchen, with Gumball being impressed about him taking his diet seriously. However, in the dining room, Gumball points out several other plates Richard has, with Richard giving somewhat true reasons how they help with his diet.

The next morning, Gumball and Darwin are eating their cereal. Richard goes into the kitchen, appearing more fat than he was last night. Darwin sees this as a roll neck sweater, but Richard says he is not wearing a roll neck sweater. Gumball takes notice and sees that it is Richard's actual neck. Gumball begins to doubt that Richard's diet is helping, though Richard denies it. Gumball also points out that the fridge has been consistently empty, prompting Richard to deflect their accusations by ordering groceries online. However, he becomes impatient waiting for them to arrive and decides to go with Gumball and Darwin to the grocery store instead. Unfortunately, Richard is too obese to properly get in his car, and attempts to fasten his seatbelt prompt the car to fall over on its side.

After that, Gumball and Darwin help Richard by dieting the right way. They begin by telling Richard to be open and honest and ask Richard if he has any food hidden in the house. After Richard tries to throw them off, Gumball and Darwin just look in various places all over the house for hidden food. Eventually, they decide that they have seen enough and punish him by putting him on "lock-down" in the shed.

Darwin stands guard near the shed while Gumball watches a surveillance feed to make sure Richard stays put. Gumball reports that he notices something, and upon further inspection, Darwin sees Richard eating a 'burger'. Darwin goes in the shed to confront Richard but notices that he is gone and that the 'burger' was a decoy. Darwin then looks up at the ceiling to find Richard drooling on him, causing Darwin to freak out. As he vigorously tries to wipe the saliva off, Richard escapes and gorges himself by the fridge.

The kids instead try to get Richard to work out through the use of food as a motivator and, after a synth-rock crossfade montage in which Richard gets more and more buff, the two call it a day. However, Richard continues to work out without them, and the next morning, the kids find him, grotesquely buff, having a fight with Mr. Robinson for being in the way of his car, waking the two up. Gumball and Darwin surmise that they created a monster before Mr. Robinson drives off with Richard on the car's hood, bound for the Elmore Mall.

The two set out to try to stop Richard, fearing embarassment, and track him through his aggressive selfie habits. Meanwhile, Richard makes Hexagon Lady uncomfortable, dives into a fountain to save a coin Alan threw in (and thus ruining his wish for world peace), and steals the tires off an ambulance to use as weights before being chased off. When Gumball and Darwin arrive at the scene, they overhear of a fire on West Elmore Boulevard, noticing that Richard is there posing with a hose.

At the scene of the fire, Richard continues to pose before a shocked crowd, preventing the fire department from being able to put the fire out. The Doughnut Sheriff shows up and tries to tase Richard, but in the process, he only makes Richard's abs more defined. Gumball and Darwin finally show up and remind Richard of how much he misses food. Suddenly, Richard sees all of the food that the spectators are eating, causing him to take a step back and fall over. While doing so, he causes the hose to disconnect from a nearby fire hydrant, proceeding to spurt water upon the fire, putting it out.

Richard realizes that he went too far and decides to make it up to Gumball and Darwin by taking them out for pizza, ending the episode.

Cultural References

The orchestral piece that plays after Richard comes out from diving into the water fountain to retrieve Alan's coin is Léo Delibes' "Flower Duet" from the opera Lakmé.

The record labeled "Rage Against the Humans" that Richard hid pizza in is a reference to the rock band Rage Against the Machine.

The scene where Gumball and Darwin are using food to get Richard to excercise could be a reference to the film Kung Fu Panda.

This episode is somewhat similar to the Family Guy episode called He's Too Sexy for His Fat, in which Peter becomes muscular and attractive but also becomes obnoxious and narcissistic because of his new look.

In the Polish version of this episode when Richard is at the travel agency, instead of New Jersey, Darwin says Katowice.

Richard: [Gasps] That means I missed a whole day's eating! [Checks the fridge, which is empty] Hmm, it's weird. Since I started dieting, we run out of food so quickly I have to go buy groceries every day. Maybe I'm doing something wrong. Hmm. [Thinks] That's it! I should get the groceries delivered!

[Gumball and Darwin groan. Richard sets up a laptop on the table, types something, and closes the lid]

Richard: Done!

[The three sit in silence for a moment, then Richard taps his fingers impatiently]

Richard: Let's go to the grocery store.

Darwin: But you just ordered a whole load of food.

Richard: I've got to have something to eat in the meantime, don't I? Chewing is one of the best ways to burn calories.

[Gumball and Darwin are buckled into the backseat of their car. A loud thump, occurring at regular intervals, is causing the entire vehicle to tremble]

Gumball: [Sighs] It's taking him forever.

[Straining himself, Richard makes it around the hood and squeezes into the driver's seat. When he reaches for the seatbelt, the car tips onto its side]

Gumball: Uh, Dad? I don't think this diet's working.

Secret Stash

[Back inside, Richard is collapsed on the living room couch, with Gumball and Darwin standing nearby]

Gumball: Now, if you want to take this seriously, you need to be open and honest about what you eat.

Darwin: Do you have any food in the house we don't know about?

Richard: Uhhh...

Gumball: Dad!

Richard: I thought that would throw you guys off.

Gumball: Hmm.

[Gumball picks up the TV remote and discovers two sausages in the battery slot. Him and Darwin then proceed to search the house, finding Swiss cheese in the bathroom, a sandwich disguised as the phone, sliced meat in the photo album, some pizza in a record sleeve, a cookie in a computer DVD tray, and fried chicken under a lampshade. They confront their father in the kitchen, where Darwin swipes the banana he is using for a necktie]

Darwin: That's not so bad.

Gumball: Wait a minute.

[He peels the banana to reveal a corn cob, which he in turn peels to uncover a corn dog. Darwin holds it up to Richard, accusingly]

Darwin: Hm.

Richard: [Ashamed] Mmm.

Gumball: That's it, we're putting you in lockdown! Somewhere where there's no food.

[Gumball is in his bedroom, monitoring security footage on the computer screen. He is communicating with Darwin, who is in the backyard, via walkie-talkie]

Gumball: Fish Finger, do you copy? I repeat, Fish Finger, do you copy?

[The video feed shows Richard in the supply shed with his back to the camera]

Gumball: Sounds like... chewing. What's he doing in there? I can't make it out. Do you see anything?

[Darwin climbs the side of the shed and looks in the window. He squints in order to figure out what Richard is holding]

Darwin: [Gasps] He has a burger! Repeat, he has a burger!

Gumball: You're gonna have to go in. And, Darwin? Be careful.

[Darwin opens the door to a seemingly vacant shed. Near the back, there is a lone stool with the burger sitting on it]

Darwin: Mr. Dad? [Gasps] He's gone!

Gumball: But that's impossible! What can you see?

Darwin: [Approaches the stool; Picks up a bundle of clothes] Oh my gosh! The hamburger's fake!

Gumball: It must be a trap! Get out of there! Abort! Abort!

[From above, a viscous liquid drips onto Darwin's head. He looks up at Richard, who is clinging to the ceiling. As Richard hisses, more of the liquid falls from his mouth and onto Darwin's face. He screams and frantically tries to wipe it off]

Flab to Fab

[Richard is running on the sidewalk while chasing after pieces of candy. Up ahead, Gumball is on the back of a bicycle, peddled by Darwin, dropping said candy]

Gumball: It's working! But it feels like something's missing.

Darwin: Training wheels?

[They immediately fall over]

Gumball: Nah, we're too old for them.

[The animation rewinds, bringing the bike upright again]

Darwin: Synth rock and cross-fades?

[Gumball nods approvingly; Music plays during a montage of Richard performing various exercises, while Gumball and Darwin provide the figurative carrot on a stick]

Music: Feel the heat when your heart's on fire. Burn it up, let it take you higher. Tearin' down the walls that cage your mind. [Repeats]

[Partway through, they replace the junk food with healthier alternatives, and the workout continues. The song ends with Richard having successfully lost weight, and the three celebrate on the front porch]

Gumball: [High-fives Darwin] Woo-hoo!

[The brothers enter the living room, but Richard remains outside]

Gumball: Ahh, I knew all we needed to get Dad fit was a montage.

Darwin: Yeah! And quick, too! It was under a minute.

[The song carries on in the background]

Gumball: [Sighs] That tune is so annoying. Still got it going around in my head.

Darwin: Me too.

[Gumball opens the door; The music gets louder]

Darwin: Oh, he's still montaging.

Gumball: I'm sure he'll tire himself out soon.

[The next day, Gumball and Darwin are asleep in their bedroom when they are awoken by a commotion outside]

Gaylord Robinson: [Honking the horn] Hey, get off of my car! Get out of the way, Watterson!

[Gumball and Darwin look out from the window. Down on the street, an overly muscular and shirtless Richard is posing on the front of Mr. Robinson's vehicle]

Gaylord Robinson: Get out of the way of my car!

Richard: That's right, buddy. Honk if you think I'm tonk.

Gumball: [Humorless] Oh look. We've created a monster.

Darwin: Yeah, a really ripped one.

Richard: Say, which one of you two fine specimens is coming with me to the mall? People there are gonna wanna see me with my shirt off. [Flexes]

Gumball: [Nervous] Yeah, uh, I think we're gonna stay home.

Richard: I wasn't talking to you. I was talking to these babies.

[Richard kisses his biceps while photographing himself with a cellphone]

Gaylord Robinson: Aw, for cryin' out loud!

[Mr. Robinson backs his car up, then drives into Richard, carrying him away on top of the hood]

Gumball: [Sighs] We have to follow him.

Darwin: 'Cause he's a danger to himself?

Gumball: No, because there's a danger he'll embarrass us.

Vanity Insanity

[Mr. Robinson's car screeches to a halt in the Elmore Mall parking lot. Richard slides off and rolls into position for another photo]

Richard: Thanks for the lift.

Gaylord Robinson: Bah, I was tryin' to run you over.

[Gumball and Darwin are racing to the mall on foot]

Gumball: How are we gonna know where he is?!

Darwin: [Checking his phone] Don't worry, he's selfie-ing now. He updates his profile picture every five seconds. We can work it out from that. [Shows the screen to Gumball] See? Look at those puppies.

Gumball: [Covers his eyes] Ah, I don't wanna see that! [Peeks at an image of Richard holding two dog pups] Oh. Not what I expected. That means he's at the pet store!

Bandage Paramedic: I mean, his abs are phenomenal, but he has got to be stopped!

Ambulance Radio: We have a fire on West Elmore Boulevard. Wait, there's a guy, he's taking the hose. Sir, he's... he's posing with the hose! Sir, sir?!

Darwin: [Hesitant] Uh, m-maybe it's not him?

Ambulance Radio: Look at the size of those biceps!

Gumball: Yeah, it's definitely him.

[At the scene of the fire, Richard has the hose wrapped around his shoulder. His back to the burning house, he is showing off to the gathered crowd and firemen]

Hank: Sir, for pity's sake I need the hose to put out the fire!

Karen: There might be people in there!

George: He stole my helmet!

Mike: [To the viewer] You join us here as our brave fire department are prevented from doing their job by a local jerk.

[A siren wails; Doughnut Sheriff drives up and gets out of the police cruiser]

Doughnut Sheriff: Sir, stop posing with the fire hose or I'll have to use this! [Readies his taser]

[Richard ignores him and takes yet another selfie]

Doughnut Sheriff: I warned you! [Shoots Richard, then becomes awestruck] Oh my gosh! It's just making his abs more defined.

Karen: Magnificent!

Hank: Everything we try just makes him more beautiful.

George: You'd feel so safe in those arms.

[Gumball and Darwin appear, ducking under the barricade]

Darwin: [Yelling] Dad, stop!

Gumball: You're taking this too far! You've become vain! Remember what's important to you! What means more to you than anything else?

Darwin: Yes, remember your family!

Gumball: No, food! Remember food!

["Remember food!" echoes; Richard turns to the onlookers and sees them eating various snacks. He stumbles back, overwhelmed by his memories, and falls to the ground. The hose is ripped from the hydrant, and the resulting spray of water douses the flames]

Mike: You join us here as a local hero has put out a house fire without the aid of our useless fire department. Who needs firemen anyway?

[Richard, Gumball, and Darwin are standing by an ambulance]

Richard: I'm sorry, kids. I guess I went a bit too far. Let me make it up to you. Who wants pizza? And after that, we can go for Mexican. And after that, we can go for Chinese. Oh, and we should get a burrito too, and maybe some ice cream.

[The three stroll into the distance]

Richard: You know what? I could also really go for a taco right now. There's this place I know where they toast the tacos first. Then, maybe a burger.